Roost Height-Chickens Jumping Ability

[clogan98]

I'm looked through the forums but can't find a thread that matches my questions. I have a smaller coop, not a walk in. It's 4' wide by 5' high at the roof peak. I'm wondering if where I put the roost and nest box (just under 2' and 18" for the nestbox) is too high. How high can a chicken jump in an enclosed coop? Obviously they wouldn't be flying around in there so it would be a question of if they could jump up to it. I'm going to get some heavier girls (Orps, brahmas...) and wondering if they can jump that high.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Yes they can jump (while flapping their wings) up 2 feet. With the heavier breeds a lower roost (like you have) can be a good thing to prevent bumblefoot. If they start having a problem with jumping as the roost fills up, you can put a nice cinder block in the front for them to use as a step up.

Make sure your nest boxes stay lower than the roost or you will have them roosting in the nest boxes.

 

[clogan98]

Thanks. Yes I did make sure they were higher than the nest box. I read about them roosting in it if it wasn't. I've read EVERY chicken book in the library and been on every chicken site I can find to make sure I do things properly as I'm a first time chicken owner. I built the coop myself and am still nursing some serious splinter and hammer wounds, lol. I am using two 1x2's for roosts, stacked. The lowest is 22" so they can jump on that one and hop up to the higher one (which is slightly smaller in length) if they want. I hope they like it. : )

 

[chickenbythesea]

if you're worried about roost height, just stagger them up so they can hop from a lower one to a higher on and come down the same way. This has always worked for us and it's a great transition for when they're little to when they're full grown.